Mobile payment account systems are generally known, in which portable electronic devices are configured to provide payment from an electronic wallet. Typically, these portable electronic devices are configured to enable a contactless communication with a merchant Point Of Sale (POS) terminal to carry out a payment transaction, for example using near field communication (NFC) technology.
Such conventional mobile payment systems typically involve a complicated process for provisioning a mobile payment account on the portable electronic device. Customers expect a certain degree of security and peace of mind that their sensitive identification and account details are protected from theft, and therefore known account provisioning systems involve a time consuming activation process which often requires the customer to, for example, post in a copy of documents to verify their identity, telephone the account issuer to provide verbal confirmation of their identity, or login to a website to complete a lengthy authentication process. This results in significant delays between a customer requesting a new mobile payment account and the time when the mobile account is actually provisioned and ready for use to carry out payment transactions.
What is desired is a more efficient account provisioning system and method which enables substantially real time activation of a new mobile payment account and which facilitates expedient security measures to prevent fraudulent use and identity theft.